- Hardware FAQ

Sony Computer Entertainment Inc.
Presents
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*****Sony PlayStation 2 FAQ v1.98****
***Written and Produced by TimiAzN***
******Last Update: July 07, 2004*****
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WARNING: This file was designed to display properly through a
Microsoft Internet Explorer browser. Other programs may not
display the diagrams properly.
UPDATE**: Any Macintosh computers viewing this file in a Safari
browser will not display the diagrams properly.
NOTE: From now on, I will make weekly or biweekly updates only,
depending on how much information I have over e-mails and IMs.
*****************************************************************************
--------------------------------------
PRE-FAQ Questions: You Must Read This!
--------------------------------------
1. Can I play imports on <PS2 Machine Region>?
(revised off -wdleun@hotmail.com-s message)
A: Nope. Sony has a strict policy of regional lockouts. NTSC/UC games can
only be played on a NTSC/UC machine. NTSC/J games can only be played on a
NTSC/J machine. PAL games can only be played on a PAL machine. If you are
serious about wanting to play it, mod chip is the only solution.
2. Will the controllers, multitaps, memory cards, HDD unit work with
the specific PS2?
Those type of peripherals are region-free. They can be used on any machine.
However, the HDD unit CAN be used on any machine, but the software drivers
to make it function are not region-free.. Same goes for the remote control.
*****************************************************************************
Contents
--------
--->Contact Information<---
---->Revision History<----
Section I. About this Guide
1-A. What is the PlayStation 2?
1-B. What do I get when I buy a PlayStation 2?
1-C. How do I hook up my PlayStation 2 to my TV?
Section II. The History of the PlayStation
Section III. The Specifications
3-A. 128-bit Emotion Engine
3-B. 150MHz Graphics Synthesizer
3-C. PlayStation CPU
3-D. Sound
3-E. Miscellaneous
Section IV. The Features
4-A. Backwards Compatibility
4-A-1. Games
4-A-2. Peripherals
4-A-3. Compatibility
4-B. Peripherals
4-B-1. Memory Card(8MB)
4-B-2. Dual Shock 2
4-B-3. Vertical/Horizontal Stand
4-B-4. Network Adaptor
4-B-5. Hard Drive(HDD Unit)
4-B-6. DVD Remote
4-B-7. Multitap
4-B-8. Sony USB Headset
4-C. PlayStation 2 Features
4-C-1. Different Ways to Hook up your system.
4-C-2. DVD Movies
4-C-3. Expansion Bay
4-C-4. USB ports
Section V. Hard Drive Disk(HDD) Information
5-A. What You Get In the Package.
5-B. Features
Section VI. The Games
6-A. PS1 games with PS2 enhancements
6-B. PS1 games that don't work at all on the PS2.
6-C. Must Have Games
6-C-1. Games of 2000
6-C-2. Games of 2001
6-C-3. Games of 2002
6-C-4. Games of 2003
6-C-5. Best Series on PlayStation 2
6-D. Sony Computer Entertainment-only developed games
Section VII. The Future
7-A. The Sony PSP
7-B. The Sony PlayStation 3
7-C. The Sony PSX
7-D. Upcoming Games in 2004
Section VIII. Comparison to Nintendo Gamecube and Microsoft Xbox
8-A. Compared to Nintendo Gamecube
8-A-1. The Game Library
8-A-2. The Hardware
8-B. Compared to Microsoft Xbox
8-B-1. The Game Library
8-B-2. The Hardware
Section IX. PlayStation 2 Common Issues
9-A. Disc Read Errors
9-A-1. How to Fix Disc Read Errors
9-B. Other Issues
9-B-1. Controller
9-B-2. Memory Cards
9-C. Problems from Message Boards
Section X. Frequently Asked Questions
10-A. Frequently Asked Questions
10-B. E-mails
Section XI. Miscellaneous Info**Under Construction**
11-A. PlayStation 2/Other Links
11-B. Secrets/Cool Stuff
11-C. Rumors
11-D. My Review
Section XII. Credits
12-A. Credits
12-B. Thank you E-mails
*******************************************************************************
----------------------------->CONTACT INFORMATION<-----------------------------
*******************************************************************************
Real Name: Helen Chiu
CodeName: Miyuki Chan
B-Day: March 25, 1985
ICQ: 78129469(I'm barely on ICQ..)
AOL/AIM: AzNxxGrL4u, KimmyC1089
E-mail: AzNxxGrL4u@aol.com, KimmyC1089@aol.com
MSN Hotmail: red_mimi701@hotmail.com
Yahoo ID: None
Where you can find me: GameFAQs Forums(Username: TimiAzN).
*******************************************************************************
---------------------------->REVISION HISTORY<---------------------------------
*******************************************************************************
1.98 - Just a few new additions to the guide, which notched up the version
number by 0.01. It's not much, but every little thing counts.(July 07, 2004)
(~91kb)
1.97 - Xavier3156 contributed more information on the HDD unit. Big thanks
to him again! Also, thanks to another kind contributor for additional
information. No, this guide isn't close to 200% complete as the first
version I've created was 1.00. It's more like getting close to 100%
complete but I'll never know. There's too much to know about the PS2 and
its hardware/accessories and more information comes every week.(June 20,
2004)(90k)
1.94 - Created a new Section, Section 5: Hard Drive Disk(HDD) information,
thanks to Xavier3156@aol.com. He contributed a chunk load of HDD information,
and more will become available soon. Big claps to him =).(May 19, 2004)(88k)
1.89 - Nearly a month without an update. Looks like it's close to completion,
but it needs more revision. So, what's new? I updated the PS1 games on PS2
list and fixed some more mistakes thanks to some kind supporters. (May 16,
2004)(84k)
1.86 - Seriously, it's long time no update. Well, I think I've gotten enough
information for another update, although it's not much really. Updated the
Disc Read Error section thanks to one person, and also the Frequently Asked
Questions section as well. Set up a Pre-FAQ question section up top before
you read the contents.(April 19, 2004)(82k)
1.83 - More Pressure Sensitive games added thanks to Kevin Simard. Fixed other
various information.(February 5, 2004)(81k)
1.81 - Fixed some mistakes, updated Section 9. 9-B. E-mails. Also updated
Frequently Asked Questions in Section 9-A. More information contributed by
Ben Matthews on PS2 enhancements for PS1 games and color boxes info. Updated
other various info. Added a new section in the credits, titled Thank you
e-mails.(January 29, 2004)(81k)
1.71 - More on Section 5. PS1 games on PS2, submitted from e-mail by Joseph
Manfredi, fixed some mistakes, and included a 'What I need list' under the
Revision History, other various updates, and updated Section 8. 8-C. Problems
from Message Boards. Also added a part in Section 1. 1-C about the main menu
of the PlayStation 2 system.(January 23, 2004)(76k)
1.59 - A new part in Section 8. 8-C. Problems from Message Boards., and other
information on Memory Card Troubleshooting. Reorganized diagrams and contents.
Updated Must-Have list, thanks to Josh!(January 20, 2004)(71k)
1.33 - Added a new Part in Section 5. Updated Section 5. PS1 games(from Ben
Matthews) on PS2 and 10. Frequently Asked Questions, and other minor updates.
(January 8, 2004)(67k)
1.26 - Fixed Some Mistakes, More Information in Section 11. Miscellaneous
Info, and added developer information to the Games 2000-2004 lists. Also
updated Section 7 with the specifications of the other next-gen consoles,
and various info! Updated Section 8. PlayStation 2 Common Issues.(January
4, 2004)(65k)
1.19 - Added links in Section 11, included more information in the Contact
Information. Set up a E-mails List in Section 10.(January 3, 2004)(58k)
1.16 - Created Section 11: Miscellaneous with Some Info, Updated Various
Other Info, and fixed some errors. Changed Credits to Section 12. Included
Review...(January 2, 2004)(54k)
1.1 - Updated Section 4-C-2(DVD Movies) with Dual Shock controls, Updated
Frequently Asked Questions in Section 10, rearranged the games List from
2000-2004 in alphabetical order.(December 31-January 1, 2004), and various
other info.(47k)
1.05 - More Information Added(December 31, 2003)(44k)
1.04 - Some Launch Information Added and Other Various Info. Guide first posted
in GameFAQs.(December 29, 2003)(42k)
1.03 - More information added(December 6, 2003)(32k)
1.02 - Added more info... on the future release by Sony.(December 5, 2003)(28k)
1.01 - Started FAQ, completed Sections 1-3.(December, 4, 2003)(18k)
_______________________________________________________________________________
***Future Updates***
If you can help me, I'll be extremely grateful!
- PlayStation 2 European Launch Games Information!
- Future Peripherals/Accessories for PS2!
- Any possible suggestions and questions!
*What I need! Please help about this as well!
- Any information on the HDD unit!
*******************************************************************************
----------------------->SECTION I. ABOUT THIS GUIDE<---------------------------
*******************************************************************************
This guide is for everything you need to know about the Sony PlayStation 2
Computer Entertainment System. If you have any questions or suggestions,
please e-mail me at AzNxxGrL4u@aol.com.
Please do not copy this guide without my permission. Doing so will cause
you to commit plagiarism. Note that in mind.
This guide is found posted at the following sites:
http://www.gamefaqs.com/
http://www.ign.com/
http://www.cheatcc.com/
Thank you for taking the time to read this guide and hopefully the updates
will occur every week or two, depending on how much information I receive
during that time.
-------------------------------
1-A. What is the PlayStation 2?
-------------------------------
The PlayStation 2 is one of the three next-gen consoles. it's in the market
to compete with the Nintendo Gamecube and the Microsoft Xbox. Sony promised
us a system capable of producing movie-like graphics when the developers are
finished using the maximum capabilities of the system.
----------------------------------------------
1-B. What do I get when I buy a PlayStation 2?
----------------------------------------------
Purchasing a PlayStation 2 system through retail stores will most likely
give you the full package inside. The package includes...
PlayStation 2 Computer Entertainment System
1 Dual Shock 2 Analog Controller(Black)
1 Composite A/V Cable(Red, White, and Yellow Plugs)
1 AV Power Cord
1 Printed Set(Instruction Manual, etc..)
------------------------------------------------
1-C. How do I hook up my PlayStation 2 to my TV?
------------------------------------------------
The System(Front End)
______________________
| |<-----(Reset and Eject buttons)
| |
| |
| |
| |<-----(Disc Tray)
| |
| PS2 |
| PlayStation 2 |
| |
| | (FRONT END)
| |
| |
| |
| |
| |
| |<-----(Memory Card Slots x2, Top)
| |<-----(Controller Ports x2, Middle)
| |<-----(USB Ports x2 and S400 i-Link, Bottom)
|---------------------|
The System(Rear End)
______________________
| |
| |<---(Power Switch, Multi A/V Connector,
| | and AC IN Connector)
| |<--(Optical Digital Output)
| |
| |
| PS2 |
| PlayStation 2 |
| |
| | (REAR END)
| |
| |
| |
| |
| |<-----\
| |<----- ) The Expansion Bay(and PC Card slot)
| |<-----/
| |
|---------------------|
Step 1.
Don't worry about the Expansion Bay for now. Instead take out the AV Power
Cord and plug it in the back of the PlayStation 2 where there are two pins
sticking out from inside(AC IN Connector), and then plug the other end to a
working electrical outlet.
Warning: There are voltage issues.
1. If you are using a NTSC/UC machine, then the voltage is 120V.
2. If you are using a NTSC/J machine, then the voltage is 100V.
3. If you are using a PAL machine, then the voltage is 220V.
4. If you live in USA/Japan, then a NTSC/UC and NTSC/J machine is
compatible with your outlet.
5. If you live anywhere outside the USA, then you need a Power
Converter which is available in any hardware store.
Step 2.
Now it depends on your TV now. If you see white and yellow inputs somewhere
on your TV, then you're in luck because the Composite A/V cable that was
included in the package supports it. You will not see the red input if your
TV is monaural. See Section 4-C for more information on the other possible
way to connect your PS2 to a TV.
Step 3.
Plug in the Dual Shock 2 controller in the front of the console. It might
be hard to see where the port is.
Step 4.
Once you are done completing Steps 1-3, turn on the Power Switch on. You
will see the "Sony Computer Entertainment" logo plus a nice blue background.
Then, it will take you to the Browser and System Configuration menu.
NOTE: Please see Section 4-C-1 for more information on possible connections.
---------
Main Menu
---------
This is where you see the Browser and System Configuration options. Pressing
Triangle on this screen will take you to the Driver Menu.
Console - SCPH-xxxxx
Browser - x.xx
CD Player - x.xx
PlayStation Driver - x.xx
DVD Player - x.xx
*Pressing Triangle while hi-lighting 'Console' will take you to the Diagnosis
feature, which I will no idea on what it does. But Sony claims that turning
this on will give you the best possible disc playback.
*Pressing Triangle while hi-lighting 'PlayStation Driver' will take you to
the enhancements that you can turn on for better PlayStation game playback.
Some games work, some don't. See Section 6. The Games for more information.
In this menu you can turn on the following options..
Disc Speed - Toggle between Standard/Fast Loading
Texture Mapping - Toggle between Standard/Smooth
-------
Browser
-------
This is where you manage your save files from your memory cards or start a
disc that's already inside the PlayStation 2, if it's compatible.
--------------------
System Configuration
--------------------
This is where you change your system settings. If you have a memory card,
then you'll need 5KB of space to save the System Settings.
The following in the System Configuration options can be initially changed
regardless of your hookup.
- Time, Date, and Daylight Savings(This is where you change your time
settings.)
- Language(NTSC/J version will only have English and Japanese, NTSC/UC
and PAL version don't have Japanese language.)
- Digital Optical Output: On/Off(If you have a speaker system hooked up
at the back, you can turn this on, and sound will come out of the Optical
Digital Output.
- Screen Size(Set your screen size to either a 4:3, 16:9, or Full Screen
ratio)
- Component Video Out: Either "RGB" or "Y Cb/Pb Cr/Pr", depending on which
hookup you are using.
Consult your manual for more information.
*******************************************************************************
--------------------->SECTION II. HISTORY OF PLAYSTATION<----------------------
*******************************************************************************
The PlayStation actually has a history behind it. Back then, when Sega released
the Sega CD(the one that attaches to the Megadrive/Genesis), Nintendo wanted to
create a CD-ROM peripheral for the Super Famicom(Super Nintendo). They hired
Sony Corporation to develop the console for them. Suddenly, at some time,
Nintendo for some reason rejected Sony when they were in the final stages of
development. Sony was stuck with a working model and the SNES-CD was never
released. So what did Sony do? Instead of trashing the hard work they did, they
enhanced it, designed new controllers, and renamed it to the PlayStation. It
made its debut in Japan on December 4, 1994. Sony then created three main
markets to cover the PlayStation sales in each region...(Sony Computer
Entertainment Inc., Sony Computer Entertainment Europe, and Sony Computer
Entertainment America).
Sony PlayStation Release Dates:
Japan: December 3, 1994
USA/Canada: Early September 1995
Europe: Q4 1995
Sony PlayStation One(PSOne) Release Dates
Japan: Summer 2000
USA/Canada: Fall 2000
Europe: Fall 2000
The Sony PlayStation 2 was its sequel system. Release dates are listed below..
Sony PlayStation 2 Release Dates
Japan: March 4, 2000
USA/Canada: October 26, 2000
Europe: November 24, 2000
PlayStation 2 Launch Titles(Japan)
----------------------------------
Artdink: A-Train 6
Ascii: Kakinoki Shoogi
Ask: Kanekyuu Billiard Master Q
Astrol: American Pinball(Miscellaneous)
From SofEternal Ring
Idea Factory: Sky Surfer
Jaleco: Stepping Stage
Koei: Kessen
Koei: Mahjong Taikai
Konami: Jikkyoo World Soccer 2000
Konami: Drum Mania
Namco: Ridge Racer V(Racing)
SCEI: Fantavision(Puzzle)
Square: Driving Emotion Type-S(Driving)
SunSoft: Street Mahjong Trance
T&E Software: Golf Paradise(Sports)
CAPCOM: Street Fighter EX 3(3-D Fighting)
PlayStation 2 Launch Titles(USA/Canada)
---------------------------------------
From IGN...
1. Madden NFL 2001 (EA, Sports)
2. SSX (EA, Sports)
3. NHL 2001 (EA, Sports)
4. FIFA 2001 MLS (EA, Sports)
5. Kessen (EA, Adventure)
6. X Squad (EA, Action)
7. Swing Away (Paradise Golf in Japan) (EA, Sports)
8. Sim Theme Park (to be renamed as Theme Park World) (EA, sim)
9. Street Fighter EX3 (Capcom, Fighting)
10. Tekken Tag Tournament (Namco, fighting)
11. Ridge Racer V (Namco, Racing)
12. Summoner (THQ, RPG)
13. Ready to Rumble (Midway, Boxing)
14. Star Wars: Starfighter (LucasArts, Action-Shooter)
15. Unreal Tournament (Infogrames, First-Person Shooter)
16. Evergrace (Agetec, RPG)
17. Armored Core 2 (Agetec, Action)
18. Eternal Ring (Agetec, RPG)
19. Timesplitters (Eidos, First-Person Shooter)
20. Fusion GT (Hresvelgr in Japan) (Crave, Racing)
21. Smuggler's Run (Rockstar, Racing-Adventure)
22. Midnight Club (Rockstar, Racing)
23. Silent Scope (Konami, Action)
PlayStation 2 Launch Titles(Europe)
-----------------------------------
(This part is currently under construction)
PlayStation 2 Supported Developers(USA)
---------------------------------------
From GameZone UK..
989 Studios
7 Studios
Acclaim Entertainment Inc
Activision Inc
Agetec Inc
American Softworks Corp
AndNow (Virtual Ocean, Nooks and Crannies)
Atlus USA Inc
Bungie Software
Capcom Entertainment
Cerny Games
Cube
Crave Entertainment
Digital Anvil
Dreamworks Interactive LLC
Eidos Interactive
Electronic Arts
Enix Corp
Flesh & Wire (Running With Scissors)
Fox Interactive
GT Interactive
Oddworld Inhabitants (Hand of Odd, Munch's Oddysee)
Hasbro Interactive
Humongous Entertainment
Incredible technologies
Infogrames Entertainment
Insomniac Games
Interplay Entertainment
Konami of America
LucasArts Entertainment
Midway Home Entertainment (Spy Hunter)
Mindscape
Namco Hometek
Naughty Dog
Neversoft
Psygnosis
Red Storm Entertainment
Rage Software
Shiny Entertainment
Sierra Online (Professional Bullrider)
Square Electronic Arts
Stormfront Studios
Sunsoft
Surreal
Take-Two Interactive/Rockstar
TerraGlyph Interactive
The 3DO Company
THQ
Titus
Ubi Soft
Universal Interactive
Working Designs
PlayStation 2 Supported Developers(European)
--------------------------------------------
3DO Europe Ltd
Acclaim Entertainment (Europe)
Activision UK Ltd
Argonaut Software
Criterion (Trickstyle 2)
Codemasters Software
Core Design
Disney Interactive
Eden Studios
Eidos Plc
Electronic Arts Ltd
Eurocom Developments Ltd
GTI Software Europe
Hasbro Interactive Ltd
Infrogrames Entertainment
Kalisto Entertainment
Konami of Europe
Lego Media International
Lionhead Studios
Rage Software (Untitled Game)
Reflections
Revolution
Square Europe Ltd
Take-2 Interactive Software Europe Ltd
THQ International
Travelers’ Takes UK
Ubi Soft Entertainment
Virgin Interactive Entertainment Europe
*******************************************************************************
------------------------>SECTION III. THE SPECIFICATIONS<----------------------
*******************************************************************************
(Taken from nz.playstation.com/)
----------------------------------------------
3-A. The 128-Bit Emotion Engine Multimedia CPU
----------------------------------------------
Clock Speed: 294.913 MHz
Cache Memory: 16KB Instruction, Data 8KB + 16KB
Main Memory: 32MB Direct Rambus(RDRAM) running at 800Mhz, dual channel
Memory Bus Bandwidth: 3.2GB per second
Co-Processor: Two Parallel Vector Operational Units
Floating Point Performance: 6.2GFLOPS
Polygon Rate: 75 Million Polygons per second(no texture layer), 38 Million
polygons per second(one texture layer), and 20 Million polygons per
second(two texture layers)
Compressed Image Decoder: MPEG-2
------------------------------------
3-B. The 150MHz Graphics Synthesizer
------------------------------------
Clock Speed: ~150Mhz(147.456MHz)
On chip memory(VRAM): 4MB DRAM
Frame Buffer Bandwidth: 38.4Gigabytes per second
Pixel Write Speed: 2.4Gigapixels
DRAM Bus Bandwidth: 48GB per second
DRAM Bus width: 2560 bits
--------------------------------------
3-C. Integrated 32-bit PlayStation CPU
--------------------------------------
Clock Speed: 33.8MHz Regular, 37.5Mhz with Fast Loading enabled
IOP Memory: 2MB
--------------
3-D. The Sound
--------------
Number of Voices: 48 channels, with 3D surround sound
Sound Memory: 2MB
Output Frequency: 48Khz max(DAT quality)
Supports: Dolby Digital, AC-3, and DTS(Digital Theatre System)
------------------
3-E. Miscellaneous
------------------
Format: Can run PlayStation games(Black Bottom), Audio CDs(Original or CD-R/
CD-RW), PlayStation 2 CDs(Blue/Purplish Bottom), PlayStation 2 DVDs
(Single Layer Silver or Dual Layer Gold Bottom), and DVD Movies
Speed: DVD-ROM - 4X speed, CD-ROM - 24X speed
Expandibility: Controller Ports(x2), Memory Card slot(x2), USB(Universal Serial
Bus) ports(x2), Optical Digital Output, Expansion Bay, a S400 iLink
port(this was removed in the later models), and a Type III PCMCIA
slot above expansion bay(open the cover first)
Dimensions: 301mm(W) x 182mm(D) x 78mm(H), or 12" x 7.25" x 3.125"
Weight: 2.2kg(4 pounds and 14 ounces)
Disc Capacity
-------------
1. PlayStation CD(650MB)
2. Audio CDs(74/80min or 650/700MB)
3. PlayStation 2 CDs(650MB)
4. PlayStation 2 DVDs(One layer - 4.7GB, Dual Layered - 8.5GB)
5. DVD Movies(One Layer/Single Side - 4.7GB, Dual Layered/Single Side - 8.5GB)
(One Layer/Double Side - 9.4GB, Dual Layered/Double Side - 17GB)
*******************************************************************************
--------------------------->SECTION IV. THE FEATURES<--------------------------
*******************************************************************************
****************************
4-A. BACKWARDS COMPATIBILITY
****************************
One good thing about the PlayStation 2 is that it can play back all your old
PlayStation games! Not only that, but you can also plug in your old
PlayStation-compatible peripherals, such as memory cards, controllers,
and multitaps. However, there are a few rules to this matter.
------------
4-A-1. Games
------------
There are some PlayStation games that don't seem to work at all on the PS2.
They either crash, freeze, or cause graphical glitches when you turn Fast
Loading or Texture Mapping on in the PlayStation Driver menu. Please see
Section 6. The Games for more information on which games are compatible and
non-compatible with the PS1 options turned on.
------------------
4-A-2. Peripherals
------------------
Another thing about the backwards compatibility of PlayStation 2 is that it
can detect all your old equipment. All official PlayStation products will
work with PlayStation 2.
Conditions:
1. You must have a PS1 memory card present in order to save PlayStation games.
2. You must have a PS1 multitap to play multitap-enabled PS1 games.
3. You must have a PS2 memory card to save PS2 games.
4. You must have a PS2 multitap to play multitap-enabled PS2 games.
5. You can copy your PS1 saves to the PS2 memory card for "storage" only. A
PS1 saved games will take up 8kb per block. If you want to use your saves,
you must copy them back onto the PS1 memory card for it to work.
--------------------
4-A-3. Compatibility
--------------------
At the back of every game case in the bottom, there should be some wide
rectangular boxes that tell you which hardware is compatible with the game
and how much space is required on the memory card to save. I will list what
they mean one by one, in no particular order...
a. White Box - Shows how many players can play the game at once.
b. Light Blue Box(Memory Card(for PS2) - xxxkb) - The amount of space *minimum*
required to save a game on the memory card.
c. Pink Box(Analog Control) - Analog Control means you need to be using a
controller with two analog sticks. Dual Shock and Dual Shock 2 are prime
examples.
d. Yellow Box(Vibration Function) - Only a Dual Shock type controller can have
Vibration Function.
e. Red Box(Pressure Sensitive) - A number of games does use this feature.
A Dual Shock 2 is required to play this game.
f. Purple Box(Multitap) - The multitap(sold separately) is supported.
g. Green Box(Digital Control) - Any Controller will work fine, as long as
they are compatible with PlayStation.
h. Blue Box(Network Adaptor) - Either requires or supports the Network
Adaptor(sold separately).
i. ??? Box(Progressive Scan) - Progressive Scan features are only in the
SCPH-50000 or later models.
j. Red Box(iLink) - iLink is supported. Very few games support it.
****************
4-B. PERIPHERALS
****************
From here I will only list the official peripherals they have for PS2 at this
time being. This means no third-party stuff. I will also state the cost of
each peripheral at this point. I will only listed the cost in US currency.
All other currencies are different.
-----------------------------------------
4-B-1. Memory Card for PlayStation 2(8MB)
-----------------------------------------
Cost: $24.99 for one, $39.99 for two pack
Model: SCPH-10020 U
The original PlayStation's memory cards were saved by blocks. This time,
games are saved by bytes(like PC's). It's up to the developers how much
space they want to use on the memory card. Most games take between 16KB
-450KB at most. Role-Playing Games has those "save per file" systems where
you can save as many files as long as there is space on the memory card.
There is a two-pack available from Sony. Saves you ten dollars.
-------------------------------------
4-B-2. Dual Shock 2 Analog Controller
-------------------------------------
Cost: $24.99 each
Model: SCPH-10010 U
Yes, we all remember the original Dual Shock Analog Controllers. The only
thing Analog back then was the twin Analog Sticks. This time, every button
you see is analog except for Start and Select. The d-pad this time makes
it easier to do rotations in 2-D and 3-D fighting games.
------------------------------------
4-B-3. Vertical and Horizontal Stand
------------------------------------
Cost: $14.99 each
Model: Vertical: SCPH-10040 U, Horizontal: SCPH-10110 U
One good thing about the PlayStation 2 is that you can stand it vertical
and still play games in that position. There is also a horizontal stand
available if you want to add color to your PlayStation 2 system.
----------------------
4-B-4. Network Adaptor
----------------------
Cost: $39.99 each
Model: SCPH-????? U
Sony release the ability to go online back in August 2002. They released
their game SOCOM: US Navy Seals to go along with it.
(For more information on how to set up your Network Adaptor, please read
Brutal Es Online Gaming FAQ)
---------------------------
4-B-5. Hard Drive(HDD Unit)
---------------------------
Cost: $99.99 (according to Square-Enix USA website)
Model: SCPH-?????
Requirements: Network Adaptor for full functionality.
The HDD is now released with Final Fantasy XI pre-installed with the disc
set and other things. The Network Adaptor(sold separately) is required to
power the HDD unit.
Information on the HDD can be found at
http://www.sscorpio.com/~bungiefan/
-OR- You can check Section 5 for what a kind contributor contributed.
--------------------------------------------
4-B-6. DVD Remote Control + IR Receiver Unit
--------------------------------------------
Cost: $14.99 each
Model: SCPH-10171
For those of you who actually watch DVD Movies on your PS2, this may come
in handy. The good thing is that you have more features to play around with.
The bad thing is that the IR Receiver Unit will take up one controller port.
In later models, Sony implemented the IR Receiver on the PS2 itself.
Contributed by Xavier3156@aol.com on May 20, 2004:
- There are three versions of the remote. The first did not have the reset
and open/close buttons. The second added these. The third and the newest
one is the second version remote packaged with a IR receiver and and
updated driver disk.
-----------------------------
4-B-7. Multitap(for 4-Player)
-----------------------------
Cost: $34.99 each
Model: SCPH-10090 U
Yes, we remember the original Multitap for the PlayStation. Sony has made us
a brand new black one. Read Section 4-A-2 for information on compatibility.
-----------------------
4-B-8. Sony USB Headset
-----------------------
Cost: $29.99 each
Model: SCPH-????? U
Yes, this is the headset that Sony released so you can talk to your buddies
during online play. SOCOM II and Lifeline are two games that support this
peripheral.
***************************
4-C. PLAYSTATION 2 FEATURES
***************************
----------------------------------------------
4-C-1. Different Ways to Hook up Your System..
----------------------------------------------
This part of the section is about the possible ways to connect your PS2 to
your TV. I will only list the official accessories only. Cost may vary and
may not be accurate.
RFU Adaptor
-----------
Cost: $14.99
Model: SCPH-10071
This means by far the worst way to hook up your system. This adaptor supports
most old TVs back in the 90's. Picture quality is dim, have a lot of fuzziness,
and gives the PS2 the worst picture it can output. If you are paying so much
for this machine, why reduce the picture quality of your games you love??
Composite A/V
-------------
Cost: $14.99
Model: SCPH-10030 U
This is the one that actually comes with your system. It's a set of red, white,
and yellow plugs that connects to the Audio/Video inputs on your TV. Compared
to RF Adaptor, the picture quality is brighter, removes most of the fuzziness,
and gives a decent picture. Most TVs these day should support this cable.
S-Video(Super Video)
--------------------
Cost: $29.99
Model: SCPH-10060 U
This is one of the higher quality connections you can make. Picture quality
is sharper and clearer compared to Composite. It make a HUGE difference, so
paying for this cable is a no-brainer.
Component RGB
-------------
Cost: $29.99
Model: SCPH-10100 U
This is the highest connection you can make. This is the clearest output the
PS2 can provide. I'm not sure which TVs support these, but you'll definitely
need a high-end TV.
-----------------
4-C-2. DVD Movies
-----------------
One good thing about your PlayStation 2 is that it's able to play your DVD
Movies! However, there are specific regions that you can play. NTSC/J machines
can play Region 2 DVDs, NTSC/UC plays Region 1 DVDs, and PAL I am not sure of.
However, all PS2 systems can play DVDs that have "Region ALL" printed on the
back of the case.
**The Controls for the DVD player with a Dual Shock/Dual Shock 2 controller**
L2 - Rewind
R2 - Fast Forward
L1 - Previous Chapter
R1 - Next Chapter
D-pad - Cursor Control
Start - Pause/Play
Select - Display the Control Panel
L3 - Subtitle Options
R3 - Audio Options
X - Enter
Triangle - DVD Menu
Circle - Cancel/Stop
Square - Title Menu
**Note: The Japanese PS2's (NTSC/J) will have Circle and X reversed.
(More Information will be Added soon)
--------------------
4-C-3. Expansion Bay
--------------------
You might be wondering that the Expansion Bay is for. Well, now that the
HDD unit is released, that is what it's used for.
----------------
4-C-4. USB Ports
----------------
You might be also wondering why Sony isn't supporting the USB ports for so
long! Well, in Japan, they have quite a lot of devices that plugs in the
USB ports. As in America and Europe, we get the EyeToy, which is a motion
tracking device that Sony Computer Entertainment Europe developed for over
two years. Pretty soon there would be more from Sony. We'll just have to
wait some more..
*******************************************************************************
-------------------->SECTION V. HARD DRIVE DISK(HDD) INFORMATION<--------------
*******************************************************************************
The HDD unit was released on March 23, 2004 in the USA by Sony Computer
Entertainment America. If you are curious of when it was released in Japan,
it was sometime in mid-2001. European gamers wont get it until sometime
later.
************************************
5-A. What Do You Get In the Package?
************************************
(Contributed by Xavier3156@aol.com)
- 40GB(Gigabyte) Hard Disk Drive(HDD) with brackets
- HDD Utility Disc Ver. 1.10
- HDD Manual
- HDD Utility Disc Ver. 1.10 Manual
- Final Fantasy XI Game
- FFXI Manual(which is 164 pages long)
- Quick Start Guide(13 Pages long)
- Final Fantasy XI Game Disc
- PlayOnline/Tetra Master Disc
The HDD will come preinstalled with the Final Fantasy XI game and it's
additional software. So how much space does it take. The whole thing
takes 10GB almost. Let me break it down to you:
Final Fantasy XI Game - 8,192MB
Tetra Master - 128MB
PlayOnline Viewer - 1,024MB
*************
5-B. Features
*************
Sony didn't ship the HDD with the multimedia features, but they will be
available as a download soon. I don't know when though.
Here are some things you should know about the HDD..
(Contributed by Xavier3156@aol.com)
The 40GB HDD is preformatted, so the actual capacity of the HDD is
38,144MB.
You can put saves of games in the HDD unit, but you can't save directly
onto it unless the games supports it.(Many games in Japan support the
HDD unit, and only two support it in the USA, so far..) You can, however,
transfer the saves over from your memory card for storage only. If you
want to use the saves, you must transfer them back. Kind of like PS1
saves on a PS2 memory card.
A Network Adaptor is required for installation of the HDD. If you do
not have a Network Adaptor, you need to shell out forty bucks to get
one. You slide the HDD into the Expansion Bay and then you firmly push
the Network Adaptor onto it. Xavier also said: "The HDD is actually
just a standard 40GB 5600RPM drive you'd find in a PC. You could
probably reformat it and use it as a PC drive if you decide to go
temporarily insane."
More from Xavier...
"I noticed that when you turn the PS2 on(from hibernation" via the
front power button) it automatically reads the HDD each time. I noticed
that it seemed too slow loading a game by a few seconds but it may
just be me because I have been playing .hack and that particular game
takes a while to load anyway."
"I am not sure about previous version of Ps2's but mine has a light
slightly below the 2nd controller port located in the vents. This
is a "active" light for the drive and will turn on when the HDD is
being read. I am not sure if this was in all versions of the PS2
but the HDD manual notes the light so I would assume it refers to
all versions."
Contributed by Xavier3156@aol.com on May 20, 2004:
"I forgot to mention that certain titles benefit from the HDD. It
will speed up load times, etc. The only American release I am aware
of that currently uses this is Resident Evil: Outbreak. I believe
RE:O actually lets you place the entire game onto the HDD, however
I cannot currently confirm this since I do not not have the game."
Revised from his message..
- There are older versions of the PS2 without a HDD expansion bay.
These versions of the PS2 were only released in Japan, and a external
HDD unti must be purchased for it. A lot of Japanese games support the
HDD unit, being SCEI released the HDD since mid-2001. Such games that
support it are Final Fantasy X, Capcom vs SNK 2, Ace Combat 4, Xenosaga
Episode 1, etc..However, the codes for installing into the HDD has been
removed for the American and European versions.
- The HDD utility disc has the updated DVD driver(which is ironcically
place onto a memory card and cannot be copied/transferred).
(There will be more on the HDD pretty soon!! Again, big thanks to
Xavier for the information on the HDD.)
*******************************************************************************
---------------------------->SECTION VI. THE GAMES<----------------------------
*******************************************************************************
***READ ON FOR HELP ON ENABLING THE PS1 ENHANCEMENT OPTIONS***
To turn on the PS1 enhancement options from your PS2, start up your PS2 until
it goes to the Browser/System Configuration screen. Then simply hit Triangle
and it will bring you to a screen giving you a list of version numbers. Go
select the PlayStation Driver and hit Triangle, and from there you can turn
on the options to makes your games load faster and/or smoothen out visuals.
***END HELP***
Keep in mind that in this section, this is game from *my* experience. Feel
free to e-mail me if you have more to contribute.
Key:
1. FL = Fast Loading
2. TS = Texture Smoothing
* = From Ben Matthews(ben_matthews3@hotmail.com)
** = From Joseph Manfredi(jmanfredi@monmouth.net)
*** = From D. Minter(dminter@mindspring.com)
************************************
6-A. PS1 games with PS2 enhancements
************************************
Alien Resurrection - FL decreases load times by 40%. TS gives smoothness to
backgrounds and objects.
Capcom vs SNK Pro - The manual clearly states that you should turn the options
off.
**DDR: Konamix - TS gives very minimal improvement upon graphics.
*Dragon Warrior VII - TS smoothes out any 2D images (characters, trees,
enemies, etc.). All 3D remains the same.
***Fear Effect - "None of the 4 discs would load. PS2 just sits at the
PS1 boot logo screen."
**Final Fantasy Tactics - TS is slightly noticable on things like magic and
summons, maybe backgrounds, but other things tend to look a little etchy
sometimes.
**Final Fantasy VII - FL causes the game to crash sometimes.
**Final Fantasy VIII - This game was definitely made for the enhancements,
FL slightly decreases load time when moving from place to place in a city.
TS makes everything smoother, especially that pixelated ground, it looks a
lot more realistic with TS.
***Gauntlet Legends - "Same as Fear Effect."
*Grandia - TS smoothes out most of the jaggies in the game.
*Grand Theft Auto 2 - FL reduces the wait at the game's first loading screen.
**Gundam Battle Assault - TS smooths mobile suits, main menu looks etchy.
**Gundam Battle Assault 2 - TS smooths out all the viewable pixels and jaggies
on the mobile suits making them look totally revamped, great stuff.
**Lunar: The Silver Star Story - TS makes no difference, FL makes loading a bit
faster when exploring from place to place.
*Megaman - TS seems to just slightly smooth out everything.
**Metal Gear Solid - TS improves graphics, especially that pixelated blood in
the "Ninja hall"
*Rainbow Six - TS smoothes out any 2D images. All 3D remains the same.
***Rival Schools: United by Fate - "Disc 1, Arcade, does not load. Results
are same as Fear Effect. Disc 2, Evolution, will load."
**Soul Blade - FL loads battles up faster, TS improves models and backgrounds
slightly. Fifty percent of the time it makes no difference.
**Star Ocean 2 - TS gives cleaner sprites on characters and battle backgrounds.
FL freezes the game when you hit New Game or Continue.
Street Fighter Alpha 3 - FL causes the game to crash. TS gives slightly better
picture.
*Strider 2 - TS smoothes out everything.
***Strider 2 - "With Strider 2, the Strider 2 disc behaves oddly on 2
different PS2's I've owned. The Board 1 original release October 26,
2000 model and a Board 7 model I had modded. Even on the unmodded system,
the PS2 will sometimes report the disc is not an original and refuses to
load it. Brings up Capcom's big red circle with an X through it and the
phone number."
**Tekken 3 - FL significantly decreases load time at the VS screen, without
FL it averages 5-7 seconds, with FL, 2-4, big difference. TS also improves
graphics on those blocky character models.
**The Legend of Dragoon - TS smoothes out blocks and jaggies.
*Tommorow Never Dies - FL makes the music and sounds in the game play way too
fast.
*Torneko: The Last Hope - FL shortens all load times by roughly 50%.
*Total Eclipse Turbo - TS smoothes out everything.
**Xenogears - TS improves graphics.
************************************************
6-B. PS1 games that don't work at all on the PS2
************************************************
(Submitted by Xjoopx75)
March Madness 2000
Gradius Deluxe Pack
Toua Plan Shooting Battle
Wing Commander III
Gallop Racer
the Japanese Monster Rancher
Dragonbeat
Formula One 99
Namco Museum Encore-any version of it
Note: Every other game not listed here makes no difference whether you turn on
the options or not.
********************
6-C. Must-Have Games
********************
In this section, it's just my opinion and what I've seen most of the fans
suggested. Some other people may have better opinions than me. Keep in mind
that this section is only for PlayStation 2, hence the PS2 FAQ :P.
* = From Josh Michalski..
------------------------------
6-C-1. Must-Have Games of 2000
------------------------------
Year 2000 wasn't a good year for the PlayStation 2. Some of the launch titles
were okay, but it was mostly the backwards compatibility feature that saved
it from going down in sales.
Dead or Alive 2: Hardcore(3-D Fighting, Tecmo)
Dynasty Warriors 2(Action/Strategy, Koei/Omega Force)
*Red Faction(Action, THQ)
Silent Scope(Action, Konami)
Street Fighter EX3(3-D Fighting, Arika/Capcom)
------------------------------
6-C-2. Must-Have Games of 2001
------------------------------
Now we're talking. 2001 was probably the best year for PlayStation 2 as it
had so many amazing titles.
Devil May Cry(Action/Thriller, Capcom)
Dynasty Warriors 3(Action/Strategy, Koei/Omega Force)
Final Fantasy X(RPG, Turn-based, Squaresoft)
Grand Theft Auto 3(Action/Driving, Rockstar)
Gran Turismo 3: A-Spec(Racing, Polyphony Digital)
Ico(Action/Fantasy, SCE)
Jak & Daxter: The Precursor Legacy(Action/Platformer, Naughty Dog/SCEA)
Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty(Action/Adventure, Konami)
Onimusha: Warlords(Action, Capcom)
Resident Evil: Code Veronica X(Action/Horror, Capcom)
Silent Hill 2(Survival Horror, Konami)
Twisted Metal: Black(Action/Racing, SCE/Incog Inc.)
Zone of the Enders(Mech-type Anime Combat Action, Konami)
------------------------------
6-C-3. Must-Have Games of 2002
------------------------------
2002 was a pretty cool year..
Dynasty Tactics(Strategy, Koei)
Fatal Frame(Horror, Tecmo)
Grand Theft Auto: Vice City(Action/Driving, Rockstar)
*Kingdom Hearts(RPG, Square-Enix)
Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring(Action/Fantasy, Surreal Software)
Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers(Action/Fantasy, EA Games/Stormfront Studios)
*Medal of Honor: Frontline(Action/War, EA Games)
NBA Street Vol. 2(Sports, EA)
Onimusha 2: Samurai's Destiny(Action, Capcom)
Ratchet and Clank(Action/Platformer, Insomniac/SCE)
*Red Faction 2(Action, THQ)
Silent Hill 2: Greatest Hits!(if you don't have Silent Hill 2 yet, Konami)
SOCOM: U.S. Navy Seals(Action/Shooter, SCE/Zipper Interactive)
Suikoden III(RPG, Konami)
The Mark of Kri(Beat 'Em Up Action, SCE)
------------------------------
6-C-4. Must-Have Games of 2003
------------------------------
However, 2003 has more titles than 2001 did.. as developers are getting
better....
Castlevania: Lament of Innocence(Action, Konami)
Chaos Legion(Action/RPG, Capcom)
Dynasty Warriors 3: XTreme Legends(Action/Strategy, Koei/Omega Force)
Dynasty Warriors 4(Action/Strategy, Koei)
Dynasty Warriors 4: XTreme Legends(Action/Strategy, Koei)
EyeToy: Play(Miscellaneous, SCEE)
Fatal Frame II: Crimson Butterfly(Horror, Tecmo)
Final Fantasy X-2(RPG, Square-Enix)
Grand Theft Auto Double Pack(if you haven't got the games already, Rockstar)
Jak II(Action/Platformer, Naughty Dog/SCEA)
King of Fighters 2000/2001 pack(2-D Fighting, SNK Playmore)
Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King(Action/Fantasy, EA Games)
Manhunt(Action, Rockstar)
*Medal of Honor: Rising Sun(Action/War, EA Games)
Metal Gear Solid 2: Substance(if you don't have Sons of Liberty yet, Konami)
NBA Jam(Sports - Basketball, Acclaim)
Need for Speed: Underground(Racing, EA)
Primal(Action/Adventure, SCEE)
Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time(Action, Ubi Soft)
Ratchet and Clank: Going Commando(Action/Platformer, Insomniac/SCEA)
Silent Hill 3(Survival Horror, Konami)
SOCOM II: U.S. Navy Seals(Action/Shooter, SCE/Zipper Interactive)
*Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell(Action/Stealth, Ubi Soft)
Tokyo Extreme Racer 3(Racing, Crave/Genki)
Tony Hawk's UnderGround(Extreme Sports, Activision/Neversoft Entertainment)
WWE Smackdown: Here Comes The Pain(Wrestling, THQ/Yuke's)
Xenosaga Episode 1(RPG, Turn based, Namco/Monolith Soft)
Zone of the Enders: The 2nd Runner(Mech-type Anime Combat Action, Konami)
-----------------------------------
6-C-5. Best Series on PlayStation 2
-----------------------------------
Final Fantasy(RPG, Square-Enix)
*Madden NFL Football(Sports-Football, EA Games)
--------------------------------------------------------
6-D. Games only developed by Sony Computer Entertainment
--------------------------------------------------------
This part of the section only lists the games developed by Sony
Computer Entertainment. Some games are released worldwide, and
some games are released to their respective regions.
(From GameFAQs.Com)
SCEA
----
Dark Cloud(RPG)
I.Q. Remix+: Intelligent Qube(Music)
Ico(Action/Fantasy)
Kinetica(Mech Racing)
NBA Shootout 2003(Sports-Basketball)
NFL Gameday 2001(Sports-Football)
Popolocrois III
Rise to Honor(Action/Martial Arts)
Syphon Filter: The Omega Strain(Action/Shooter)
The Mark of Kri(Action)
TVDJ
SCEE
----
Dropship: United Peace Force
EyeToy: Play/Groove(Miscellaneous)
Formula One 2001
Formula One 2002
Formula One 2003
GhostHunter(Horror)
Hardware
Primal(Action)
This is Football 2002(Sports)
Wipeout Fusion
World Tour Soccer 2002(Sports)
World Tour Soccer 2003(Sports)
SCEI
----
Ally of Justice
Ape Escape 2(Action)
Ape Escape 2001(Action)
Arc the Lad: Twilight of the Spirits(RPG)
Boku no Natsuyasumi 2
Fantavision(Puzzle)
Forbidden Siren(Suspense)
Hungry Ghosts
Mojib Ribbon
Operator's Side
Otosaz
Phase Paradox
Poinie's Poin
Sky Gunner
Sky Odyssey
Space Fishermen
Surveillance
*******************************************************************************
--------------------------->SECTION VII. The FUTURE<---------------------------
*******************************************************************************
Stay in touch for the:
***************** ************* *****************
* * *
* * *
***************** * *****************
* * *
* * *
* ************ *
***********************************
7-A. Sony PSP(PlayStation Portable)
***********************************
Cost: Competitive Price with the Nintendo Gameboy Advance(rumored around
$100-200 US Dollars).
The Sony PSP is a handheld developed by Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. to
compete with the Nintendo Gameboy Advanced and all other handhelds in the
handheld market. It's recent specifications are posted at:
http://www.playstationportable.info/
Release Date of the Sony PSP is unconfirmed. But it's going for a Q3-Q4 2004
release in Japan. Stay tuned for more information.
Recently, some developers say they were ready for PSP development. Also, fans
mentioned PS1 games being ported to the PSP in the future.
Update: Konami announced Metal Gear Acid for the Sony PSP.
***************** ************* ******************
* * *
* * *
***************** * ******************
* * *
* * *
* ************ ******************
***********************
7-B. Sony PlayStation 3
***********************
The Sony PlayStation 3 is currently under development by a joint effort
between Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. and IBM Corporation(International
Business Machines). They recently named it the Cell Technology. The PS3
will supposedly be 1,000 times faster than the PlayStation 2, but that
could have been a rumor.
Its specifications are too early to be known at this time. The release date
will be sometime in 2005-2006, at an estimate.
However, thanks to azazeldracos@yahoo.com, he gave us a site to look at a
brief layout of the PS3 specs..
http://www.ps3insider.com/modules.php?name=FAQ&myfaq=yes&id_cat=1&categories
=Playstation+3+Console+Hardware+Questions
***Update: From what I've managed to get out of the PlayStation 2 General
Boards, the PS3 will be simply a "Teraflop in a Box", and uses Rambus memory.
***************** ************* * *
* * * *
* * * *
***************** * *
* * * *
* * * *
* ************ * *
*****************
7-C. The Sony PSX
*****************
Excuse me for not putting the X as thin as possible.
Many people will confuse this for the original PlayStation. The original
PlayStation was abbreviated "PS" by Sony. The "PSX" abbreviation was made up
by the fans. This new PSX that Sony is releasing will feature a DVD-Burner,
a hard drive, and the ability to play PlayStation 2 games.
Here are the current specs for the "PSX" home entertainment system..
(From http://www.sony.net/SonyInfo/News/Press/200310/03-1007E/)
This just came in from Xavier3156@aol.com:
"Sony decided to release the PSX without the DVD burner at the last minute
in time for the 2003 holiday season. It looks like the PSX wont reach the
states as well.."
***************************
7-D. Upcoming Games in 2004
***************************
Year 2004 is already here, so get ready! Here are some upcoming must-haves
for this year! Once again, some are from my suggestions and some are from
other PlayStation 2 fan suggestions.
Games of 2004
-------------
Cy Girls(Action/Adventure, Konami)
Devil May Cry 3(Action/Gothic, Capcom)
Dragonball Z: Budokai 3(3-D Fighting, Atari)
Final Fantasy XI(MMORPG, Square-Enix)
Jak III(Platformer, Naughty Dog/SCEA)
Gran Turismo 4(Racing, Polyphony Digital)
Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas(Action/Driving, Rockstar)
Killzone(Action, SCEE)
King of Fighters: Maximum Impact(3-D Fighting, SNK)
Maximo vs Army of Zin(Action, Capcom)
Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater(Action/Stealth, Konami)
Mortal Kombat: Deception(3-D Fighting, Midway)
NIco(or Ico 2)(Action/Fantasy, SCEA, unconfirmed)
Onimusha 3: Demon Siege(Action/Hack n' Slash, Capcom)
Ratchet and Clank: Up Your Arsenal(Platformer, Insomniac)
Resident Evil: Outbreak(Survival Horror/Online, Capcom)
Rumble Roses(Female Wrestling, Konami)
Silent Hill 4: The Room(Survival Horror, Konami)
Siren(Horror, SCEI)
SNK vs Capcom: SVC Chaos(2-D fighting, SNK Playmore, unconfirmed)
Splinter Cell: Pandora Tomorrow(Online/Stealth/Action, Ubi Soft)
Star Ocean 3: Till the End of Time(RPG, Square-Enix)
Suikoden IV(Turn-Based RPG, Konami)
Viewtifoe Joe(2D Adventure, Capcom)
Year 2005 hasn't come yet, but here are some games you might want
to take note of.
Games of 2005
-------------
Final Fantasy XII(RPG, Square-Enix)
Kingdom Hearts II(RPG, Square-Enix)
Resident Evil Outbreak File #2(Survival Horror/Online, Capcom)
Viewtifoe Joe 2(2D Adventure, Capcom)
Xenosaga Episode II: Jenseits von Gut und Bose(RPG, Namco)
*******************************************************************************
------->SECTION VIII. COMPARISON TO NINTENDO GAMECUBE AND MICROSOFT XBOX<------
*******************************************************************************
**********************************
8-A. Compared to Nintendo Gamecube
**********************************
Winner: Gamecube in hardware specifications. PlayStation 2 in expandibility.
********************************
Nintendo Gamecube Specifications
********************************
(From http://www.psreporter.com/gamecube_specifications.html)
MPU (Microprocessor Unit): 485 MHz custom IBM PowerPC "Gekko"
Floating Point Performance: 1.9GFLOPS
Graphics Processor: 162 MHz custom ATI/Nintendo "Flipper"
Full Scene Anti-Aliasing: Yes
Texture-Read Bandwidth: 10.4 GB per second (peak)
Main Memory Bandwidth: 2.6 GB per second (peak)
Pixel Depth: 24-bit color, 24-bit Z buffer
Sound Processor: 81 MHz custom Macronix 16-bit DSP
Sound Performance: 64 simultaneous channels, ADPCM encoding
Polygon Performance: 6 to 12 million polygons per second (peak)
System Memory: 40 MB
Main Memory: 24 MB MoSys 1T-SRAM
Disc Drive: 128 ms CAV (Constant Angular Velocity) system
Data Transfer Speed: 16 Mbps to 25 Mbps
Media: 3-inch, 1.5 GB capacity disc
Controller Ports: Four
Memory Card Slots: Two
Audio-Video Output: Analog and digital
Dimensions: 4.3 by 5.9 by 6.3 inches (height by width by depth)
-----------------------
8-A-1. The Game Library
-----------------------
The PlayStation 2, no doubt, obviously has the bigger game library because
it came out a year earlier. While most of the games are Rated Mature on
PlayStation 2 compared to Nintendo Gamecube, it attracts more adults into
the system. But that does not mean that Gamecube doesn't have any Mature
-rated games. It's got Resident Evil from Capcom Entertainment.
-------------------
8-A-2. The Hardware
-------------------
Central Processing Unit
-----------------------
The heart of every console. The Gamecube is a lot faster than the PlayStation
2. It can have shorter loading times as well.
Disc Capacity, Load Times
-------------------------
Nintendo is trying to reduce load times by using mini-discs. The capacity
of this mini-disc is 1.5GB. You'll see more multi-disc games on Gamecube
than PlayStation 2. The disc capacity for one PS2 DVD is around 4.7GB for
one layer and 8.5GB for dual layer. One good thing about the PlayStation 2
is that it is capable of playing DVD Movies as Gamecube lacks that feature.
Graphics
--------
Without a doubt the Gamecube can produce much better details than the
PlayStation 2. But that doesn't mean the PlayStation 2 have bad graphics.
We're seeing some great games with great graphics such as Silent Hill 3,
Chaos Legion, and Devil May Cry.
Expandibility
-------------
The PlayStation 2 has two USB ports, one PCMCIA slot, a expansion bay, a
network adaptor, and the hard drive. One of the USB devices for the PS2
developed officially by Sony is the EyeToy. It's true that PlayStation 2
has more expandibility than other next-gen consoles.
*******************************
8-B. Compared to Microsoft Xbox
*******************************
Winner: Xbox in hardware specs. PlayStation 2 in expandibility.
****************************
Xbox Hardware Specifications
****************************
The Intel-Custom 733MHz Processor
---------------------------------
Clock Speed: ~733MHz
Main Memory: 64MB Double Data Rate(DDR) SDRAM
Memory Bus Bandwidth: 6.4GB per second
Floating Point Performance: 2.93GFLOPS
Polygon Rate: 125 Million per second
Compressed Image Decoder: MPEG-2
The 250MHz Custom-Designed NV2X
-------------------------------
Clock Speed: 250Mhz
Max Polygon Performance: 125 Million/sec
Pixel Fill Rate: 4.8GB/s, No Texture, One Texture, and Two Textures
Compressed Textures: Yes(6:1)
Maximum Resolution: 1920x1080(HDTV)
HDTV Game/Movie: Yes
Full-Scene Anti-Aliasing: Yes
The Sound
---------
Number of Voices: 64 channels, with 3D surround sound
Supports: 3D Audio, Midi/DLS2, AC-3
Miscellaneous
-------------
Format: Can run Xbox games, DVD Movies, and Audio CDs.
Capacity: Xbox game(DVD-9, 8.5GB)
Speed: DVD-ROM - 2-5X speed
Expandibility: Controller Ports(x4), Memory Card, Broadband-Enabled
-----------------------
8-B-1. The Game Library
-----------------------
Okay, both PS2 and Xbox have a uber amount of Teen-Mature games. While the
Xbox has more better First-Person Shooters than PlayStation 2, the PS2 wins
in RPGs and Racing games. Certainly, the Japanese developers would support
PlayStation 2 more than they support Xbox because it has a much bigger
fanbase and they are still trying to *di-sect* the hardware to give their
games the best possible solution.
There's not many exclusives on the Xbox than PlayStation 2. Some games are
not developed for a certain console because of hardware limitations(even at
Capcom's site, they tell you that), not just because of the fanbase.
-------------------
8-B-2. The Hardware
-------------------
Graphics
--------
There's proof that Xbox has much better graphics than PlayStation 2. But who
plays for graphics anyway? I think Microsoft went wrong building a system just
for the glory of graphics. Gameplay is the key. I don't mean to disrespect
Xbox, because I've seen some great games on the system, like Project Gotham
Racing and Silent Hill 2: Restless Dreams.
Central Processing Unit
-----------------------
Or the CPU for short. The PS2 has twice the performance than Xbox.
I'm sorry, but Xbox websites don't tell you that. They only tell you the
comparison of graphics and sound. Let me explain.. first, bits don't matter
anymore, and MHz don't matter either. It's the FLOPS. You measure a CPU's
performance by FLOPS. The PS2 can perform up to 6.2 GFLOPS while the Xbox
can do a little over 3.0 GFLOPS(?). But Nvidia states that the XGPU runs
at about 80GFLOPS, so I don't know the true amount yet.
JorDaN Clock(as of 06-19-2004) confirmed:
"The 3GFLOPS is the XCPU, which handles things like AI and physics,
while the XGPU is 80GLOPS for all the visual stuff. That's why they
are different."
Memory
------
The Xbox has 64MB of DDR SDRAM running at 200MHz. The PlayStation 2 has
32MB of RDRAM running at 800MHz, dual channel. Comparison charts in websites
don't tell you that. They just simply state the amount. Even if Xbox had
128MB of memory, Japanese developers would still prefer the PS2's memory
system. Why? Beats me, I've just read about this in some article.
Contributed by JorDan Clock(on June 19, 2004):
- "Well, I am quite sure it has to do with RDRAM having greater
bandwidth. If the developers can have greater bandwidth, they don't
need larger amounts of RAM. RDRAM is dual channel, thus it has 3.2GB
of bandwidth going up and down. So RDRAM technically has 6.4GB of
bandwidth, but DDR has to share it's bandwidth between up and down."
Expandibility
-------------
The Xbox has a built-in hard drive, 4 controller ports, and online-enabled.
If you want the same thing for PlayStation 2, you need to dish out over $300
for all the additional hardware. However, for the Xbox, you need to buy a
DVD Remote for DVD Movie compatibility. For the PlayStation 2, you don't have
to. You can simply use your controller as one, but you'll be missing out on
certain features that the official DVD Remote has.
PS2 vs NGC vs Xbox - Last Minute Notes
--------------------------------------
It all comes down to the developer. A development team such as Hideo
Kojima's team at Konami Computer Entertainment Japan can utilize a lot of
power with the PS2. The same goes for Square-Enix with Final Fantasy X.
Some details are done better on the PS2, and some details are done better
on Gamecube/Xbox.
A multiplatform game will definitely look better on the Gamecube/Xbox than
the PlayStation 2 because the hardware is user-friendly and easier to work
with. But a game heavily programmed on the PlayStation 2(FFX, MGS2, R&C)
will have to be watered-down to play on the Xbox. The Gamecube can handle
it well. Then a game designed heavily on the Xbox(Halo, DoA:XBV, PGR) will
have to be toned down for the PlayStation 2 to handle it. But the Gamecube
will handle it just fine with some tweaks here and there.
Xbox Advantages over PlayStation 2
----------------------------------
- Best Online Support
- Best Sound(More Interactive Music in games)
- Comes with a Hard drive and 4 controller ports
- High-Resolution support for Gaming and DVD Movies(HDTV required & kit)
- PC ports(Easy to port a PC game to the Xbox)
- Broadband-Enabled
Gamecube Advantages over PlayStation 2
--------------------------------------
- Clearer Sharper Graphics
- Faster Loading Times
- Four Controller Ports
- Easy-to-use hardware
PlayStation 2 Advantages over Xbox/Gamecube
-------------------------------------------
- Free Online Gaming(except for Everquest and Final Fantasy XI)
- Best Controller(IMO)
- Larger Library of Games
- Backward Compatibility
- Expandibility(For In-Home Entertainment)
- DVD Movie player does not require remote(where Xbox requires it).
Xbox/Gamecube Advantages over PlayStation 2
-------------------------------------------
- Not many Disc Read Error problems.(lol)(Read below for Common Issues)
*******************************************************************************
--------------------->SECTION IX. PLAYSTATION 2 COMMON ISSUES<-----------------
*******************************************************************************
*********************
9-A. Disc Read Errors
*********************
Ah, the most common of problems with nearly more than half of the PS2 owners
out there is the dreaded Disc Read Errors(or DREs for short). People said
that the SCPH-30001 R models of the PlayStation 2 mostly cause the issue.
All other seem to work fine.
-------------------------------------
9-A-1. How to Handle Disc Read Errors
-------------------------------------
There are a few ways to handle the problem. These are from my experience
and may not work effectively with you. You are better off if you read the
Disc Read Error FAQs that other contributors have posted in this site.
They go into more detail and give more effective ways to solve your problems.
However, here are my methods:
1. The Sweat Method
-------------------
Cleaning: A Disc with a plethora of minor scratches
Effectiveness: Low to Rare(1 out of 5 chances)
Tools: Lint-Free Cloth and a Person who sweats a lot
This may sound confusing at first glance, but if you work out or go out on a
hot sunny day and sweat a lot, you take a lint-free cloth and wipe your sweat
with it. Then you wipe that sweaty part of the cloth on the bottom of the
disc as gently as possible. Then clean it dry and pop the disc inside the PS2.
One out of five chances say it will run the disc.
2. Open your PS2 method
-----------------------
Cleaning: The Lens
Effectiveness: Medium to High(4 out of 5 chances)
Tools: Lint-free cloth or Q-tip, and some rubbing alcohol.
Most of you know how this goes. Open up the PS2 and clean the lens with
rubbing alcohol. Works wonders after you put it back together.
3. Boiling Method(submitted by Rmpace31@aol.com)
------------------------------------------------
Cleaning: The Scratched Disc
Effectiveness: Unknown
Tools: Boiling Water
"Another way to fix the DRE is if the disc is scratched, put the disc in
boiling water. I am not sure how long though, but it works."
4. Send it to Sony Method
-------------------------
Cleaning: None
Effectiveness: High(Guaranteed)
Tools: A Box big enough to hold a PlayStation 2 and work order.
The most reliable way to solve a DRE problem. The bad news is that you need
to wait a week or so to get it back from Sony. Call 1-800-345-7669 and a Sony
representative will give you instructions on how to proceed.
**Keep in mind that if your PS2 is modded, don't even think about sending it
to Sony. They wont touch any modded PS2's.**
For other methods, read the Disc Read Error FAQs posted in GameFAQs, especially
the one from KabutoHunter.
*****************
9-B. Other Issues
*****************
---------------------
9-B-1. The Controller
---------------------
Very few people have controller problems. However, if you see "Pressure
Sensitive" on the back of a PlayStation 2 game case, than a Dual Shock 2 is
required. Games such as Silent Hill 2 will prompt you to plug in a Dual Shock
2. For a game like Metal Gear Solid 2: Substance, if you plug in a Dual Shock
1, the analog features wont work with it, making some actions unusable.
Games that don't tell you "Pressure Sensitive" but strongly
recommends Dual Shock 2 for full functionality:
Fatal Frame II: Crimson Butterfly
Metal Gear Solid 2: Substance
The Bouncer
Zone of the Enders: The 2nd Runner
(If you have anymore to add, please e-mail me.)
----------------------
9-B-2. The Memory Card
----------------------
Very few have Memory Card problems. A game such as Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons
of Liberty will show you corrupted data for each photo file you snap from
the digital camera. However, they can be viewed in the game.
1. Why doesn't my game save to my Memory Card?
----------------------------------------------
Reasons:
a. You are trying to save PS1 data onto a PS2 memory card.
b. You are trying to save PS2 data onto a PS1 memory card.
c. Your memory card is full.
d. You probably cancelled the save.
e. You are not using a official or licensed memory card.
Answers:
a. You can't save PS1 data onto a PS2 memory card. You must have a PS1
memory card present to save.
b. PlayStation 2 saves by bytes, while PS1 saves by blocks. They are two
different protocols and can't be used with each other.
c. Make sure you have enough space on your memory card. Some game saves
take less than what they printed in the back of the case. The reason is
that the developers want to make sure you have enough space to save. So
if you don't have enough space, free some before you save.
d. It's confusing sometimes because some games produced in Japan use their
own control method, such as Circle to Confirm and X to go back. You probably
got use to pressing the X button to confirm, but instead you cancelled it.
Keep that in mind.
e. Official memory cards are the ones produced and manufactured by Sony.
Licensed memory cards are manufactured by a third-party but tested by Sony
to ensure compatibility. If none of these fall into the memory card you are
using, then you need to buy a official or licensed memory card. Third-party
memory cards will cost less than the ones from Sony. So it's your decision.
2. The mem. card states that there is no data, but the space counter doesn't
read 8,192kb(or something like that)?(From PS2 Hardware Board.)
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Reasons:
a. You saved unlicensed software into the PS2 memory card.
b. You have corrupted data.
Answers:
a. Action Replay, DVD Region X, or any unlicensed software for the PS2 will
cause that glitch. The only way to solve this issue is to buy a new memory
card.(Although some of you may know ways around that, you should help those
that don't, for your kindness. >^_^<)
b. A section of your memory card is corrupted, which means that part will be
useless. You may have to re-format it using Sharkport or something like that.
(Again, if you know ways around to fix that, tell it to your online friends
that don't know how to solve them, for your kindness. >^_^<)
For more on memory cards, read ATadeo's Memory Card FAQ for more information.
*********************************
9-C. Problems from Message Boards
*********************************
Why am I doing this? Because for those of you who DO look at this guide, you
can probably find your answer here so that you don't ask again. Be sure to
tell all your online friends about the solutions as well. So anyway..
From PlayStation 2 Hardware Board..
*Problem #1. From Majin Rosh's topic.."Uh..What the heck..?"(12-25-03)
Post: "Okay, I bought a brand new PS2 in june, (my first was broken do to my
brother and his friends rough housing. -growls-) And.. Whenever i play dvds,
the color fades in and out. i thought maybe it was just my TV, but it doesn't
do that with my VHS player or my other DVD player, so it has to be something
to do with the PS2 or wiring. any suggestions?"
Answer(from omegazeroinfinite): "Some DVDs have a built in code that makes
the picture all wonky when the player is run through a VCR. This was supposed
to be a way to stop people from recording DVD quality picture and sound on to
VHS. Try hooking it up directly to the TV."
_____________________________________________________________________________
*Problem #2. From my Topic.."Post your bad experiences with PlayStation 2 and
how you fixed it!"(01-21-2004)
Reply #1(from Mystnight(1-22-2004): "one of my old problems is that the PS2
had a problem reading my codebreaker v7, and music CD-r's after a little laser
adjusting and some litium grease on the tracs, it worked to an extent, the
only downside is that it has to sit vertically, as for the DRE's I just
swabbed the lens with a q-tip and alcohol"
_____________________________________________________________________________
*Problem #3. From Van Dongo's topic.."Question about the Japanese PS2 working
in USA"(01-25-2004)
Post: "I am looking at purchasing a Japanese PS2 in order to play import games
without having to potentially ruin my system with flip-tops or slide cards. My
questions are:
Will I need any sort of power adaptor, or will the J-PS2 work fine in an
American outlet? Do USA-PS2 controllers and memory cards work with the J-PS2?"
Answer(from TimiAzN): "Japanese PS2 runs fine on a American outlet, and your
controllers and memory cards will be compatible with the Japanese PS2."
______________________________________________________________________________
*Problem #4. From RiotGirl's topic.."Network Adaptor Question!!"(01-27-2004)
Post: "does the network adaptor produce any more fees other than your internet
connection payments"
Answer(from therad00): "Some internet service providers charge you fees, but
I'm on Adelphia net and I don't have to pay extras. But if you intend to play
Final Fantasy online or Everquest then there are monthly charges."
*******************************************************************************
--------------------->SECTION X. FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS<-------------------
*******************************************************************************
--------------------------------
10-A. Frequently Asked Questions
--------------------------------
Q1. Can I help you with this FAQ?
A: Sure thing, just try to help me with any additional info I might have missed.
Q2. My system is giving me Disc Read Errors, what should I do?!
A: There are at least three faqs regarding that matter in the PlayStation 2
Hardware FAQ section. Use them to your advantage. If you are not caring to
read them, call 1-800-345-7669 and a Sony representative will help you out.
Q3. What is the password for Parental Control?!
A: The default password is 7444.
Q4. What is this new model I keep hearing about?!
A: Sony released a new PlayStation 2 model SCPH-5000x. It has improvements
over older models. If you want one, just look for a PS2 box that has a yellow
triangle with a plus sign in the bottom right.
Here are the new Features..
- Progressive Scan support
- DVD-R, DVD-RW movie playback
- Removes iLink port
- Added Infrared Sensor for future remote
- 30% quieter fan and quieter loading
- Future Remote includes Power Button
Q5. Why do some games take up so much space on my memory card?!
A: Very likely, some games such as sports titles require a huge save on your
memory card to save a season. Most games produced in Japan will take up less
space than the ones produced anywhere else..
For now, with one save, most games should take less than 500KB.
Q6. Are you a PS2 fan?
A: Yes, I am. Not only PlayStation 2, but also a Nintendo fan.
Q7. Have you wrote any other guides in GameFAQs?
A: Here is a list of guides I wrote:
Terminator: Dawn of Fate Secrets FAQ(Covers both PS2 and Xbox)
PlayStation 2 FAQ
Aliens vs Predator(for Arcade)
Chaos Legion(PS2)
Shadow Warrior(PC)
Duke Nukem 3D: Atomic Edition(PC)
Blood(PC)
The Punisher(ARC)
Q8. What is this File Protection thing I see when I view one of my game saves?!
A: Some games use it. Some don't. For the games that do, it doesn't protect it
from being erased or deleted. It actually protects it from being copied to
another memory card, or so I've heard.
Q9. I'm stuck in a particular game! Can you help me?!
A: Although I haven't wrote any guides for the following games, I can be more
than happy to help you with the following PS1 and PS2 titles..that is if you're
on the lazy side to look for yourself in GameFAQs...
These are the titles I still have a fresh memory on..
Capcom vs SNK 2
Chaos Legion
Devil May Cry
Devil May Cry 2
Fatal Frame II: Crimson Butterfly
Metal Gear Solid
Metal Gear Solid 2: Substance
Resident Evil 2
Resident Evil Code: Veronica X
Silent Hill
Silent Hill 2
Silent Hill 3
Terminator: Dawn of Fate
The others I'm still trying to complete and get more knowledge on..
Q10. I forgot my password for the Parental Control when I want to watch
a DVD! How do I reset it?!
A: (from Avilajose01@aol.com): Go to the setup and password screen. Push
7444, then put 7444 again, then 7444 for re-input. Turn off the console
for 15 seconds. Then turn it back on and put in the password 7444, and now
you can change it to whatever you want it to be.
(More Coming Soon!)
-------------
10-B. E-mails
-------------
The e-mails I get regarding my PlayStation 2 FAQ. This may be of some help to
others.
From Xavier3156@aol.com(12-31-2003):
Q: "hello, i just got a PS2 and, since u had a faq, i was wondering if u could
answer a question for me. i noticed that my ps2 doesn't have the "iLink" port
and was wondering if u knew why this was and/or when this was phased out. i
just find it odd that they do something that dramatic w/o a "generation"
revision (a la Sega Saturn or the Genesis 2 & 3)."
A:The new Sony PlayStation 2 SCPH-5000x models does not have the iLink port
because it's not necessary. Due to online-enabled play of course.
Q: "also, i have another favor to ask, i have been looking for some of the
older games, specifically gundam, and i was wondering if u knew of a good
place online to get new, older games. i already know about ebay and amazon
was no help. any secret places u know?"
A: I may not know sites that sell old games.. but import stores such as
http://www.japanvideogames.com/ or http://www.ncsx.com/ would probably
still sell them.
_____________________________________________________________________________
From nitemare04@hotmail.com(12-31-2003):
Q: "I saw and read that Review guide about the Playstation 2 and other
compared system but I was looking towards asking about how to leave the
playstation 2 set. I am asking you the switch the playstation 2 that you
turn on and after you turn it on and by the reset I see a red light that
lights up ok and then I press it and it turns green the game starts up.
Now the real is that when you turn it off do you turn it off from the back
or ether do you just hold that reset button till it turns red again and
leave it like that once ready to turn it off or just turn it off from the
back manually?"
A: From what I've managed to get out of your message, I can answer that
there are two ways to turn off your PS2. One is Standby Mode and the other
is off mode. If you know you're not going to play for a long while, turn it
off from the back switch. If it's just temporary, hold the reset button for
one to two seconds until it goes red.
_____________________________________________________________________________
From buttman_1969@yahoo.com(01-02-2004):
Q: "dude,can u pls give me a tips on how long can i play my PS2???how many
hours??cause i bought my ps2 this past dec 27 then after jan 1 my PS2 cant
read any disc.....it looks like i over used it....pls give me a tip on how
long can i play it....."
A: Most likely a Disc Read Error problem. It's impossible to get a DRE in
a week. Your PS2 can last as long as you can handle it fine, two years at
the minimum... Call 1-800-345-7669 to have a Sony representative help you
regarding that matter.
_____________________________________________________________________________
From skins2848@yahoo.com(01-23-2004):
Q: "Hey, I have a question for you. My PS2 cd-rom drive gets stuck and I have
to keep trying to open it several times before I can get it to open. I was
wondering if there was a way to fix that without sending it in. Any help would
be appreciated, thanks."
A: If you don't want to send it in, then you should open up the PS2 and see if
any part of the drive is misaligned or anything. Something might have gotten
stuck between, maybe dust or something. Try to clean it out.
_____________________________________________________________________________
From the_firestarter_12@yahoo.com(01-26-2004):
Q: "hey. My freind told me some rumors about the PS2 having a cd burner. is
this true or is my freind full of it?"
A: Very unlikely. The only thing close to that is the Sony PSX, which features
a DVD burner and only available in Japan at the time being.
______________________________________________________________________________
From Ruff4Eva1@aol.com(01-28-2004):
Q: "something weird i discovered on the PS2 happened today. i was trying to
watch this dvd, but like this one unedited version of this comedy act wouldnt
play, probably due to like limits or something. So i was playing around in
the setup menu and there was a section dealing with regions...like i could
put it to Japanese etc, but it did nothing. like, why does it let you choose
the region but does nothing?"
A: Only Sony knows how to get around that because they know the code. I guess
they implemented that in there for a reason, which I don't even know what that
reason is.
*******************************************************************************
------------------------->SECTION XI: MISCELLANEOUS INFO<----------------------
*******************************************************************************
-------------------------------
11-A. PlayStation 2/Other Links
-------------------------------
HDD Information - http://www.sscorpio.com/~bungiefan/
PSP Information - http://www.playstationportable.info/
PS3 Information/Forums - http://www.ps3insider.com/
Sony Computer Entertainment America - http://www.scea.com/
Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. - http://www.scei.co.jp/
Sony Computer Entertainment Europe - http://www.scee.com/
------------------------
11-B. Secrets/Cool Stuff
------------------------
In this part I will list some of the cool things and secret stuff:
1. In Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty, a photo saved on the memory card
will show up as corrupted data on your memory card when viewed from the
Browser.
2. Very recently, Konami has changed their logo to a more Asian style, and
renamed their US department 'Konami Digital Entertainment America'.
3. I'll add it in here anyway. Back in April 1, 2003, Squaresoft and Enix
merged together to form Square-Enix. The recent FF and Drakengard games
have the logo in the front cover.
(E-mail me if you find more, with a detailed description!)
------------
11-C. Rumors
------------
1. Rumors about a PStwo name registered by Sony. It seems this will be a small
portable PS2, just like they did with the PS1. Sorry I don't have a link to
support this rumor, but some of you may know already.
2. Rumors about a PlayStation 2 price drop in 2004 from Sony. More details will
be revealed soon.
Update: Confirmed price drop. PS2 is now $149.99 - Go pick one up if you haven't
already.
3. Rumored Games that has yet to be announced for PlayStation 2..
- Devil May Cry 3(Confirmed)
- Resident Evil 4(Only for Gamecube only, PS2 version in doubt.)
- Metal Gear Solid: The Twin Snakes(This will never come out unless Konami
wants to redo it. For now, it's only for Gamecube.)
- Viewtiful Joe(Confirmed by Capcom)
---------------
11-D. My Review
---------------
Keep in mind that this is the exact review I posted in GameFAQs. No changes are made
except for spelling mistakes.
Introduction
------------
Back in 1994, Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. releases the PlayStation in
Japan. It was then released later in North America and Europe in Q4 1995. It
was successful. It had many great games. The RPGs is what kept this system
alive mostly.. mainly Final Fantasy VII. Then in early 2000, Sony CEI launched
Sony PlayStation 2 in Japan. And then it was released later in the year to
North America and Europe.
Developed by Sony Computer Entertainment Inc.(who allied with IBM and Toshiba)
Released worldwide.
Features
--------
The PlayStation 2 has a lot of features you can play around with. First of all,
it can play back DVD movies and you can use your controller as a remote or buy
one separately. Don't treat your PS2 as a standalone DVD player, because its
DVD is designed to play DVD-ROM games, and you want to pet it as a gaming
machine.
The best feature overall about the PlayStation 2, and a major strong point
about the PlayStation 2, is that you can play back all your old PlayStation
games. Some games wont work, and I'm thinking Sony released a list of games
that doesn't work on your PlayStation 2. While you play some games, you can
also enhanced the graphics and speed up load times by turning the options on
in the Driver menu. I'm glad Sony add this in, because then you won't have to
pay the extra cash to buy a PS1. Not only you could play your old PS1 games,
but also use your PS1 peripherals such as your controller, memory cards, etc..
The inside of the hardware includes a powerful processed Emotion Engine which
runs at about 294.913MHz, 32MB of Rambus technology RAM running at 800MHz, and
a 24X/4X CD/DVD drive. The system includes 2 USB ports(for future add-ons), a
S400 iLink port(connect one PS2 to another), 2 controller and memory card slots,
and the ability to twist the logo outside the disc tray if you stand it vertically.
Peripherals/Design
------------------
The controller is so far the best one I've used since I started playing
video games. The Dual Shock 2(more advanced than the original Dual Shock)
adds the Analog feature to all the buttons except for Start and Select. All
the buttons are positioned correctly and it makes life more easier to play
games with it. There is a MultiTap 2, which allows up to 4 controllers to be
connected so you can play multiplayer games. Also there's a Memory Card,
which allows you to save games up to 8MB.(PS2 Memory Cards use Bytes[like
computers] rather than Blocks which the PS1 memory card uses.) The remote
controller (which sells now for $14.99) lets you control your DVD Movies
more than what the controller has to offer. A controller port is required
to use the remote controller. Not only you get the remote, but you get a
disc where you can update your DVD drivers... Other accessories you can
get for your PS2 are a Vertical Stand and an Horizontal Stand. Both stands
add color to your PS2, so you don't have to see it in black all the time.
The Vertical Stand lets you put your PS2 vertically, while the Horizontal is
self-explanatory. The design of the PlayStation 2 looks incredible! Sony
always makes their products sleek and futuristic.
Games/Graphics/The Future
-------------------------
First-generation games(games from launch year 2000) that came out the same
time as the system wont look graphically detailed. So Sony decided to make
games so that other top-quality developers can get an idea of how to use to
hardware of such a complex machine. One game by Sony is Ico, their most
artistic masterpiece. Other games from Sony include Primal, The Mark of Kri,
etc.. Other games that use compressed power of the PlayStation 2 would be
Gran Turismo 3. By Q4 2001, the PS2's strong point, games tend to look better
and better. Konami releases Metal Gear Solid 2 and Silent Hill 2. Square
releases Final Fantasy X. As technology gets better, these developers can
get to the max performance of the PS2 hardware. Any game, as of up to Q1
2003 can be improved upon, because not one game has yet to use more than
50% of what the system has to offer. The PlayStation 2 can do a lot of
physics and neat effects that'll last for 2-3 more years.
The future of PS2 is among us. Better games will come out for the system,
making this happy for our lives. Future games include Metal Gear Solid 3,
Final Fantasy X-2 and XII. Long live PlayStation 2! And to remember, the
PS2 is more than just gaming and DVD. It's a Sony product!
Sound
-----
The PS2 has a Optical output so you can connect Sound hardware to give your
PS2 more sound quality. The PS2 can produce up to 48 channels of sound. Anyone
who complains about the sound of the PlayStation, then you should have your
ear checked out. While the original PlayStation only can produce to about 24
sound channels, this system merely doubles it with exciting new features,
such as Dolby Surround support for games like Metal Gear Solid 2.
Overall
-------
Buy this system. It'll last you for a while before PlayStation 3 comes out.
Somes games I recommend are the ones from Sony, Konami, Sega, Capcom and
Squaresoft. The others you choose for yourself.
The system now costs $149.99 at retail stores now that Sony has made a price
drop again. Buy it, you'll love it... but it's definitely your choice.
My final rating for this would be 10/10. Yes, a full score. I've had my PS2
for two and a half years and it's working along fine..
*******************************************************************************
----------------------------->SECTION XII. CREDITS<----------------------------
*******************************************************************************
-------------
12-A. Credits
-------------
- Thanks to GameFAQs(CJayC) for posting my PlayStation 2 FAQ!
- Thanks to GameFAQs for SCE-development information!
- Thanks to YOU for buying the system and reading this FAQ!
- Thanks to Sony for creating the PlayStation 2 Computer Entertainment System!
- AzazelDracos@yahoo.com/wdleun@hotmail.com for giving me questions and
ideas.
- Thanks Xjoopx75(Muhamed)/Rmpace31/Avilajose01 and Xavier3156 for contributing!
- Thanks to JaakuKyubi(Toyin Oluwole)/JorDan Clock for contributing information!
- Thanks all other websites(IGN, GameZone UK, PSreporter) for information!
- Thanks to ATadeo for Dual Shock 2 and Memory Card Information!
- Thanks Brutal E for the Online Gaming FAQ!
- Thanks KabutoHunter, LordAtomic, Col_Sandoz/XShady for creating the
Disc Read Error FAQs!
- Thanks to bungiefan(in the Gamefaqs message board) for providing a link
to his HDD guide for the PlayStation 2 Computer Entertainment System.
- Thanks to dsxgate for creating the PSX FAQ topic in the PlayStation 2
General Boards!
- Thanks to Ben Matthews(ben_matthews3@hotmail.com) for more information
on the PS2 enhancements from PS1 games..
- Thanks to Josh Michalski(campkillyourself315@hotmail.com) for updating the
must-have list. All games with astericks in front are his recommendations!
- Thanks to Joseph Manfredi(jmanfredi@monmouth.net) for more information on
the PS2 enhancements from PS1 games..
- Thanks to D. Minter(dminter@mindspring.com) for more information on the
PS2 enhancements from PS1 games..
- Thanks to Kevin Simard(chat_emeraude@hotmail.com) for more information on
the Pressure Sensitive games.
- Thanks to all others at the message boards for help and helping others with
their politeness...!
"PlayStation" and "DUALSHOCK" are registered trademarks and "PS2" is a trademark
of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc.
Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. is a registered trademark of Sony Corporation.
"PlayStation" and the "PS" Family logo are registered trademarks of Sony Computer
Entertainment Inc. Copyright Sony Corporation 1995, 2000. All rights reserved.
"PSX" is a registered trademark of Sony Corporation, Copyright 2003, 2004. All
rights reserved.
"PSP" is a registered trademark of Sony Computer Entertainment, Copyright 2004.
All rights reserved.
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12-B. Thank you E-mails
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From eins_alpha@hotmail.com(Raymond Bernstein)(01-27-2004):
Response: "Just wanna drop by and say thanks for the PS2 FAQ you made.
Im really amazed with the dedication of your FAQ (its friendly and
comprehensive) ;)
Keep up the good work and the professionalism!!!"
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Sony PlayStation 2 FAQ Copyright TimiAzN 2003, 2004